AM backs organ donation campaign (From Penarth Times)

AM backs organ donation campaign (From Penarth Times)

CARDIFF South and Penarth Assembly Member Lorraine Barrett has joined calls for people across Wales to talk about organ donation in order to save the lives of hundreds of people.

The Donate Wales – Tell a Loved One Campaign, led by the Kidney Wales Foundation and supported by charities including the British Heart Foundation Wales, encourages friends and families to talk about this issue.

Ms Barrett said: "There are many issues that we love to talk about, such as the rugby – yet there are some topics we are more hesitant to discuss.

"One such topic is the donation of our organs when we die."

As the law stands, for organs to be donated the deceased must have signed the organ donation register or the family must give consent for the organs to be taken upon their relative’s death – there can be no presumption of permission.

The principal problem in finding donors is that, in many cases, the family of the deceased do not know that their loved one would have wanted their organs to be donated for transplant.

It is because of the potential for saving lives and the ease with which this can be achieved that the campaign urges people to talk about whether or not they would like their organs to be donated.

There are several ways to make organ donation easier, from talking about it with relatives and friends or by signing up directly to the donation register online (www.donatewales.org) or by telephoning 0845 60 60 400.